Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic system for power/energy consumption management of one or more domestic appliances, which is routinely informed on actual energy tariff through a network control unit.
Description of the Related Art
JP-A-2000214186 discloses a power consumption management apparatus for enterprise with an electronic unit that measures total amount of power consumed by electrical equipment. EP-A-1136829 discloses a process for measuring the energy consumption of a plurality of appliances connected to a power network in which each switching-on or switching-off of each appliance is detected through a specific high frequency signal injected in the network. DE-A-3935102 discloses a process for varying the load on a power system by injecting signals into the system using an audio frequency signal generator.
Daily energy demand isn't flat; peaks of energy are generated during the day which creates variable demand and increases a utility company's charge to consumers. To avoid dangerous blackouts utility companies are searching for ways to smooth energy demand by offering advantages to customers who are able to control their power consumption.
Consequently, it would be advantageous to design a new generation of appliances that are able to manage power consumption with different tariffs on the base of signed power supply contract.
One of the aims of the present invention is to implement a power management system to help the consumer in saving energy and money. Another object of the present invention is to make the user aware of potential energy cost savings in selecting different delayed switch-on times for each appliance. A further object of the present invention is to provide a system which comprises a user interface through which the user may also input a predetermined energy cost saving target referred to a certain fixed time (week, month), the system being able to select the proper times for switching-on the appliances in order to get the energy-savings target.